How the war affected the life of animals and animal protection in Ukraine

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A year has already passed since the beginning of the full-scale invasion of the Russian Federation into Ukraine. Irreparable losses from war are measured not only in human lives, but also in animal lives. Farm animals During the 12 months of war, more than 200 farms were destroyed or damaged (and these are only those that are currently known). Farm animals were most affected in the Donetsk, Luhansk, Kyiv, Chernihiv, Mykolaiv, Zaporizhia, Kharkiv, Kherson and Sumy regions. According to the deputy director of the Department of Agrarian Development, Olena Dadus, it is previously known about the death of more than 6,000 cows, about 100,000 pigs, and more than 4.5 million farm birds. The number of fish that have died is simply impossible to count, but we know about completely destroyed fish farms. But these are only indicative figures, because we do not know anything about the fate of hundreds of thousands of animals on industrial and private farms: there is no contact with some farm entrepreneurs, some are under occupation, some abandoned the animals on the farms and left. Photo: Zaporizhzhia Regional Military Administration Animals left abandoned in villages wander without care, are blown up by mines, slowly die from injuries or from hunger, dehydration and cold. It is currently impossible to count how many such animals there are. However, it is enough to look at the map of military operations to imagine the scale of losses. Of course, there are owners who do not leave their animals. Like, for example, a farmer from front-line Karlivka. Volunteers had to order a truck to transport his entire household – 71 goats, 45 chickens, two cats and a dog. But it is not always possible and safe, especially when it comes to large, industrial livestock farms. Where there are hundreds and thousands of animals, they remain the least protected. Congestion leads to particular vulnerability in case of problems with supply, electricity, inability of staff to come. For example, 4 million (!) chickens died at the largest poultry factory in Europe in Chornobayivka, Kherson region. This was due to the fact that the Russian occupiers disabled the local power plant, which led to the shutdown of the automated feeding system. The farm workers tried to organize the delivery of fodder, but the trucks with the cargo came under fire, so for the safety of the people, the supply was stopped. Companion animals Those organizations that specialize in companion animals note that in rear areas the number of cats and dogs in shelters has increased by an average of 20-30%, in frontline regions by 60%, and in shelters near the front – by as many as 100 %. The vast majority of these animals are former pets. Thus, at the end of summer, the number of homeless animals in Kharkiv tripled. But there is also good news – the number of people willing to adopt an animal from the shelter has increased by 50%. Photo: NGO “Open Cages Ukraine” With the progress of the war, the work of animal defenders does not become less. Natalya, an activist of the “Territory of Angels” animal rehabilitation center, says that she currently cares for about 100 dogs and 300 cats. Over the entire period, her organization was able to take out about a thousand animals. According to her, the problem of abandoned animals was acute even before the war, but now it has become more serious. Because many people evacuated themselves, but left their animals behind. Animal defenders travel to the de-occupied territories in the Kharkiv and Donetsk regions and try to take the animals to safe places, clinics and paid shelters, followed by the search for a new family. Animal rights activists add that they are not only rescuing companion animals, they also receive many requests for help feeding or evacuating farm animals. However, as a rule, companion animals are often helped: dogs and cats, collecting funds for shelters or helping people who take care of them on their own. Therefore, I would like to remind you that animals on farms that have become helpless victims of the war also need help. In particular, the shelter for domestic animals “Uglyk” always needs help. Many animals in it are rescued from industrial and private farms, but due to the war, cats and dogs also appeared there. Photo: NGO “Open Cages Ukraine” Legislation Today, more than ever, animal protection in Ukraine needs the widest possible publicity and the help of all those who care about the fate of animals. It is common knowledge that the national and international protection of animal rights is a reflection of the moral and ethical ideology of society and shows the level of its development. And depending on the jurisdiction and moral principles of a certain country, the protection of the rights of different species of animals has its differences. It varies from the official recognition of some species of animals as full-fledged subjects of the state to the absolute disregard of the rights of these creatures to life. In the second case, their protection at the legislative level is completely absent and there are no provisions on the prohibition of animal cruelty. Even in the pre-war period, Ukrainian animal protection organizations, which take care of the promotion of legislative changes regarding the welfare of animals (in particular, farm animals), had to wait quite a long time for consideration of draft laws submitted to the government, aimed at improving the situation of animals and recognizing their rights to life and protection. And with the beginning of the war, these processes slowed down even more. In 2021, Ukraine rejoiced at the entry into force of draft law 2351, which expanded the concept of cruelty to animals and strengthened responsibility for violations. In 2022, the animal protection community had to actively watch so that positive legislative changes were not pushed back by bills that, under the guise of deregulation, wanted to bring back cruel practices against animals. In particular, thanks to the actions of civil society, draft law 8150 was withdrawn, which wanted to allow mass extermination of homeless animals for depopulation, production of foie gras, butchering, browning, skinning, smoking, separation of body parts from animals, etc. until the animal’s heartbeat stopped. Photo: NGO “Open Cages Ukraine” And now the NGO “Open Cages Ukraine” is actively involved in the fight against draft law 7689 dated August 22, 2022, the provisions of which nullify the latest achievements in the field of animal protection and the creation of proper conditions for keeping animals. Adoption of this draft law will contribute to the spread of exploitation of animals in the field of entertainment, inhumane treatment of them, deterioration of the environment, etc. With this draft law, they want to cancel obtaining many permits (licenses), and in case of its adoption, there will be no more regulation by the relevant authorities, which will inevitably lead to negative consequences. The NGO “Open Cages Ukraine” seeks to prevent the adoption of ZP 7689, and instead to offer an alternative, humane version of this draft law. For this, among other things, a petition has been created on the president’s website. Among the negative consequences of the adoption of this ZP 7689 is an increase in uncontrolled hunting, which will significantly reduce the population of wild animals and the uncontrolled breeding and keeping of Red Book animals (actually keeping animals that could have been illegally harvested) with the deterioration of their living conditions in cages, without accounting and control by state And this is the way to increase the volume of smuggling of such animals. The draft law also proposes to return the practice of unauthorized use of animals in entertainment: for example, in circus performances, keeping bears on a chain in the territory of restaurants, etc. Such legislative initiatives look especially cynical now, when the existence of many representatives of the fauna is under threat due to the war. Many national parks are under occupation. Many thousands of animals die from shelling and fires, exploding on mines. Red Book representatives of the fauna are under threat of destruction. Many activists of environmental and animal protection initiatives have taken up arms and are speeding up the victory. And this contribution cannot be overestimated. Those in the rear are doing their best to help those animals who have already suffered and to reduce the negative impact of war in the future. In our time, there are no actions without consequences: any, even the smallest, step towards our common future, towards our victory, is of great importance! And accordingly, even the smallest step towards improving the welfare of animals and fighting for their rights has inestimable value and importance. Join volunteer activities in the NGO “Open Cages Ukraine” to show your potential and improve your skill level in the areas of your interest, or support us with a charitable contribution of any amount, and join us on the path of fighting for a world free from suffering animals! Darya Lukyanchuk and Olena Baran, activists of the NGO “Open Cages Ukraine”, specially for UP. Life Cover photo: NGO “Open Cages Ukraine” Publications in the “View” column are not editorial articles and reflect exclusively the author’s point of view.

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